Brooklyn Brewery Pop-Up and Book Signing

Tuck your napkin into your shirt, grab your Wet-Naps, and get ready, because the Ulster County Fairgrounds are about to be taken over by the 12th Annual Hudson Valley Rib Fest, a yearly affair where more than 16,000 people converge to celebrate all things ribs-related. The day will include more ribs than that rack that flipped over the Flintstone’s car at the drive in PLUS live music, cooking demos, children’s country games, and a contest of 60 teams battling it out in the Empire State Barbecue Championship. There’s a little bit of heart behind all this rib-related activity, too — all proceeds from the event will go towards supporting Rotary activities at home and around the world. Friday 5pm-10pm, Saturday 11am-10pm Sunday 11am-5pm in New Paltz, New York.

If you’re a proper NYer you know the part a “slice” plays in your daily borough to borough maze run. We’ve written about the necessity of this iconic mainstay extensively. Since we’re kids the price for this necessity has seen a 1000% increase. Enter the recent trend in $1 slice joints. Slice Out Hunger takes the price of old, the best pizza places in NY and a HUGE charity angle on creating their Annual Dollar Slice Night. Fifty of the best NYC pizza makers under one roof for one night of a pizza party unseen since the first Napolitano’s landed on Ellis Island. 100% of proceeds benefits New Yorkers in need. We’ll be there with a bib on. Hope to see you. Wednesday, October 5 from 6pm-8pm in Soho, NYC.

Don’t let the name fool you —  the Phuket Vegetarian Festival may be the most hardcore festival we’ve ever heard of. While veggie-friendly eats do play a role in this firecracker-friendly affair on Thailand’s largest island, this nine-day religious festival is really known for its ceremonies that include acts of self-mutilation and face and body piercing with knives, stakes, and household items by entranced mediums — called mah song — who parade through the city in outfits of white. While these and other rituals like firewalking, bladed ladder climbing, and bathing in hot oil may make you cringe, they demonstrate a belief that the gods will heal any wounds and are part of a larger goal of purification that includes abstinence from sex, alcohol, and meat. But don’t worry — like any good festival, this one doesn’t forget the food, and je, special vegetarian dishes marked by red and yellow signs, is one festival tradition that’s easy to stomach. Although you may encounter a bleeding mah song or two as you chow down, that will be the only surprise — apparently je tastes just like the meat-based classics. October 1-9 in Phuket, Thailand.

When it comes to my own personal #omgdessertgoals (don’t worry, I didn’t know about that hashtag either), I’m all about the scene from Home Alone 2 with Kevin McCallister kicking it at the Plaza Hotel in a big bed surrounded by an insane spread of sweet treats and his own personal human ice cream scooper/butler gamely serving him not one, not two, but THREE scoops of ice cream. The scene is enough to make any dessert lover swoon, but let’s face it: we all don’t have access to Mr. McCallister’s credit card. And to be honest, our preferences for the sweet stuff tend to be, shall we say, a little more advanced than those of a 10-year-old from 1992. But luckily for us, Dessert Goals – NYC Dessert Fest is here to make our wildest 2016 dessert dreams come true, recommended hashtags included. The very first event of its kind, it includes a dessert photo garden, a photo booth, unlimited Intelligentsia coffee, and — oh yeah — some of the best of the best confections from NYC’s five boroughs, including sustainable ice cream sandwiches, Twinkie-inspired “cakies,” and bittles, otherwise known as cake bites infused with some of our fave breakfast cereals. Wait, what were we saying about our sophisticated adult palates…? Yeah, let’s table that convo until after the fest. October 23 in Brooklyn.